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 Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 7:38 pm
“Oh, come now, catch me if you can!”
“You little tease!”
Meadowsweet laughed, or rather giggled, at the words that followed her as she angled neatly through the trees leading out of her territory and into the Deep Woods. This particular suitor was nothing more than a few moments’ thought, but it was rather nice to have something to do with her spare time. Moulting wasn’t currently happening, and most of the fledglings who were Graduating had gone to other artisans for their patternings, and Meadow had somehow missed out on all the customers. So business was slow, but spring was getting into summer. And those who didn’t have eggs or fluffs, well, those were getting ready to start the tentative beginnings of courtship.
Which meant plenty of time for Meadowsweet to enjoy herself. And that was exactly what she was doing.
Flying just fast enough to keep things interesting, just slow enough that her current gentleman friend should be able to keep up with her, she banked lazily through the trees on the edge of this particular patch of passing land, crossing through into what she never bothered to realize was a territory. Calling and laughing at the male she assumed was still pursuing her, she made quite enough noise to make her presence known. Not that that was hard. After all, she was a beacon with her blue dye and the flower-petals she shed constantly.
It never occurred to her to ask permission to enter this territory, whoever’s it may be.
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Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 7:50 pm
Unbeknownst to Meadowsweet, she had stumbled upon the Minder's enclave she had spent much of her childhood in. It was no surprise she didn't recognize it, as time and the adult 'play' she was at was bound to wear at her memory's eye. Most of it was in the same condition as when she was raised by the talkative and friendly Typhoon, who was currently taking a nap in a tree that Meadowsweet was coming closer to.
Dune lazed on the branch close by on his back, one eye half open. He didn't trust the Sentinel or the other predators here, no no. No one to trust except Typhoon. Maybe a few others. At hearing laughter, he jumped to his paws, whiskers twitching.
"Hush, Dune, it's just a fledgling," Typhoon mumbled, not bothering to open his eyes. The giggling was providing a nice backdrop to the dream he was having, of a cool summer night with his lost love, Milkweed.
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Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2008 1:03 pm
Turning and doubling back to check on the male's progress, it took Meadowsweet a bit to realize exactly why that particular male had stopped following her. Indeed, it took her a bit to realize why she felt suddenly odd. Everything looked a bit familiar.
Oh.
She slowed her flight and alighted as soon as possible when it finally occurred to her exactly what she had done. She had entered a territory without permission, albeit a territory where many were welcome without asking. Nonetheless, it was a territory that was not hers and she should have asked.
"Huh," she murmured, sleeking her feathers in minor embarrassment and then shaking out her wings. It was a small enclave, but it was a Minder's enclave nonetheless. Her Minder's enclave. Realizing she should have truly announced herself, she sighed and hooted loudly, more formally announcing her presence.
"Hallo? Pa Typhoon?"
And she took off again on silent wings, looking for the old Sentinel she had grown up with.
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Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2008 1:49 pm
Ty shook his head at the familiar voice, and his feathers fluffed up in surprise. Could it be? He shook his feathers down and looked around for the owner of said voice. It was such a shock to the Minder, he could hardly believe his sharp ears.
"Meadowsweet?" Typhoon called, his ear tufts flickering anxiously. Was he going crazy? He stepped further out onto the branch he'd been dozing on, and caught sight of her familiar feathers--even under the dye, Ty would never forget a fledgling he had spent so much time with. He even remembered sitting on the egg that would grow into the beautiful bird he now saw before him.
"Meadowsweet, my dear!" He waved his wings in a rather ungainly way out of excitement, eyes sparkling. The Minder never looked better than when meeting an old friend, and in this case, a Sentinel he'd helped to rais from an egg. She'd been such a dear child, always kind to the Minders and her fellow fledglings. He hoped she was still just as sweet.
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Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2008 5:39 pm
Meadowsweet laughed happily at the sight of her old minder and pulled up to perch again, spreading her wings and bobbing her head in excited greeting. “Pa Ty!” she repeated, dropping from her seat on the branch and making the last, short flight to her former Minder. She hadn’t seen him in seasons other than brief glances at a few gatherings, and it was strange, almost surreal, to meet him face-to-face again. She had left to live with the Artisan she had apprenticed to, and that last goodbye had been really the last time they had spoken at length. He had been so much bigger then.
...or she had been so much smaller then.
Either way, things had changed infinitely. Meadowsweet laughed again and fluffed her feathers, quickly preening her wings out of habit—something she had been taught, all those years ago, by the particular male she was greeting again. “Pa Ty,” she said one last time, laughing a bit. “How are you? It’s been so long!”
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Posted: Thu Jun 19, 2008 7:16 pm
Typhoon chirped happily, reaching over and preening Meadow just a little. He was quite excited to see the Sentinel he had raised all grown up, and sat back to take a good look at her. His ear tufts twitched excitedly, his eyes beaming with pride.
"You are so beautiful now, Meadowsweet! A gorgeous dye job, if I may say so, now that you are a grown Sentinel." His gold eyes sparked with laughter. "I've been well, nothing to speak of really. I've made a few trips back to our old tree, just to make sure these wings can still make the flight. We're going to have quite a few hatchlings and fledglings this season, so as you know I'm excited."
He fluffed up, shifting from foot to foot, not even realizing that he had referred to the tree that he and his mate used to share as 'our' tree. If Meadowsweet remembered, Ty had spoken like this ever since his move from the edge of the Cold Forest. Anyone who was around him long enough would realize what he was referring to.
"How have you been, dear? Your Artisan skills must be godlike by now." He grinned, nudging her lightly with a wing. Whatever his fledglings did or made, he would think it was fantastic regardless, but he knew that Meadowsweet was creative enough to make great things.
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Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 6:21 pm
Laughing, Meadow slicked her feathers in embarrassment when Typhoon preened her like she was still a fledgling. "Pa," she said, laughing a little bit and fluffing up after a moment and smiling, looking shyly away in embarrassment. "You're too nice, Pa Ty," she said, looking back at him after a moment and quite happy to accept those compliments, even if she pretended they embarrassed her. Any praise was good praise, in Meadowsweet's eyes.
"It's too bad things have been so quiet," she teased gently. "You ought to be swamped with bouncing little ones, just like when you were watching me and all the rest of the fluffs." She paused and nodded, casting her gaze aside out of deference for Ty's mate, thought she wondered briefly whether or not anyone had ever met the Sentinel who had been with Typhoon all those seasons ago. Then she brightened again, turning her head and smiling warmly, eyes alight with laughter. "Then again," she began, "eggs are hatching left and right and you'll probably be buried in fluffs before long."
And then Typhoon was flattering her again. "Oh come now," she said, laughing. "You're such a flattererer, Pa Ty. I'm not that good." But she couldn't help puffing her breast feathers a bit and then stretching her brilliantly-painted wings. "I really haven't been doing much painting. Not til the moult starts again. Other than that, I've been fine."
More than fine. She found herself idly wondering if she'd ever be able to find her handsome friend again.
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Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2008 3:50 am
A note from the Herald: Hatchlings can't be roleplayed at all, but Mogami got permission from the Herald to drop him off using a NPC.The sleek shape of a blinding white Sentinel weaved silently between the trees. Carrying a small basket in his talons, the mist halted for a moment on a thick branch, hooted the required call to warn the enclave of his presence and immediately continued his approach.
The almost inaudible sound of a rapid succession of wing flaps preceded a loud thud as the talons and basket met the landing platform where Typhoon and Meadowsweet were pleasantly chatting. The old ghost minder seemed to fit the description he had been given and the mist nodded politely, taking a step forward to address him… right after he bowed his head to the lovely lady with the interestingly decorated eartufts.
“Evening, miss… Typhoon, I presume…? I’m Frostwing, an apprentice minder from a northern enclave.” He said respectfully, his grave voice deeply contrasting with his young appearance. “I’ve been sent by Winterpetal with a request. She would like to know if it would be possible for you to take this hatchling under your wing.”  Though he was clearly trying to show as much respect as possible to such an experienced sentinel of his task, one couldn’t help but notice the few discreet furtive glances he kept sending towards the wildtype female. The white hatchling moved rather roughly inside the warm basket and the young minder pulled him gently to the landing platform. Snowpeak remained quiet as he looked at each adult in turn before fluffing up to a perfectly round ball of white feathers.
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Posted: Thu Jul 03, 2008 9:27 am
Typhoon gave a big chuckle at the young apprentice minder, fluffing his feathers and peeking over the edge of the basket at the hatchling.
"Besides the fact I am a mister, young Minder, you have everything right. I wouldn't mind at all taking care of a hatchling!" The Mist Sentinel gave a little coo at the ball of feathers, leaning down and preening the hatchling carefully.
When he noticed Frostwing glancing at Meadowsweet, he of course had to make introductions. "Frostwing, this is my dear Meadowsweet. She is an artisan, and one of my grown fledglings." Ty nodded to Meadowsweet, smiling. "You may be right, dear, I may be drowning in fluffs soon!" He chuckled again at this, looking between the apprentice and the artisan.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 9:33 am
Meadowsweet looked up at the call, and she couldn't help but stare at the handsome mist and his adorable cargo. The tiny fiery-eyed fluff all but made Meadowsweet lose her cool, and as soon as she could, she shuffled a bit closer to investigate the little thing.
It took her a moment to notice Frostwing's glances, and she quickly returned them with a dazzling smile, opening one wing languidly to preen the brilliantly-designed feathers, only drawing more attention to herself. She barely even noticed Typhoon was speaking until he said her name. "Ah, hello, sir," she said, inclining her head and blinking coyly at the young male. He was a handsome one, indeed.
Her gaze strayed to Snowpeak again, and she laughed delightedly at the shape the little one had taken. "How lucky you are," she gushed to Frostwing, fixing him with one of her most brilliant smiles, "to be able to spend all your time around such adorable, darling little ones. Oh, look how sweet he is!" But her gaze was back on Frostwing by this point. "How fortuitous I happened to meet my old minder tonight," she said, leaning in and nipping affectionately at one of Ty's eartufts, "for I would never have seen such a handsome thing otherswise."
Now she was definitely not talking to the hatchling. And all thoughts of her shadow suitor were gone.
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Posted: Fri Jul 04, 2008 3:31 pm
“By ‘miss’ I meant…!” the young minder started suddenly eyeing Meadowsweet with visible embarrassment for a moment before clearing his throat and continuing with a more professional tone. “Winterpetal will be pleased. We have our talons full at the moment and she seemed to think this little guy required a little bit more attention.” Snowpeak, however, seemed to be the least of his concerns at that moment.
“Miss…Meadowsweet.” he repeated with a distant smile as the artisan was introduced, carefully examining her dye job with a complimentary glance. He seemed to think the name was quite fitting as well. When their eyes met, the male shivered slightly and when the lovely lady approached his former charge, the young minder looked at Meadowsweet as if she was gift from Noctus himself.
“Yes, lucky indeed. It’s hard to believe you… we were all once tiny balls of feathers such as…” he spoke slowly and inconsistently, chocking at the artisan’s last words. Suddenly hopping backwards at the small intimate gesture between the minder and his former charge, the mist took a small bow as he blurted out his apologies looking very uncomfortable as a wave of ruffled feathers ran through his body.
“I seem to be delaying my departure. I’m sorry, I’m sure you’re busy as well. I will take my leave now. Typhoon, sir… and Meadowseet…” the last name lingered in his beak like honey but it wasn’t long before he was leaving the platform.
His flying was rather inconsistent even if the basket he was carrying had lost a bit of weight. In his mind, he kept going back to artisan’s side to inquire on her territory, implying that he would pay her a visit. Also in his mind, she’s answer shyly and he’d puff out his chest feathers and then the two would…
He didn’t really manage to find the courage to turn back. And he would regret it for a very long time.
Snowpeak’s eyes appeared from under a pair of white feathers and he peeped at Meadowsweet with a sort of annoyed tone that clearly said “Food. Now.”
(all yours now, Lori! =D)
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Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2008 12:23 am
Typhoon cooed at the hatchling, hardly even noticing that Meadowsweet wasn't paying attention when he introduced them to each other.
"Such a pretty little one," The Mist Sentinel said to the little fluff, chuckling as he fluffed up. He preened the hatchling just a bit, beaming as he is mentioned in the conversation.
"Well, my dear Meadowsweet, it appears this little fluff is quite hungry, so I'll have to get to feeding her, and it's not a very interesting part of the job. If you don't mind me bowing out on our conversation, fluffs will be fluffs." He chuckled a little at his own joke and paused to scoop up the fluff in one wing, using a bit of Will to make sure Snowpeak stayed there. Typhoon could trust his will in small uses, but as he tried to exert his Will for longer periods of time his control tended to weaken over it.
"I hope to see you again, Meadowsweet. Perhaps I'll visit you for a little bit of a dye job. Where are you calling home lately?" He glanced down at Snowpeak and hummed a little to keep him calm, knowing the fluff would get fussy soon, impatient as most of them were.
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Posted: Tue Jul 15, 2008 8:45 am
Meadowsweet couldn't help but giggle at the apprentice Minder's awkwardness, and she watched him leave with nothing but amusement in her face, though she turned back to look at the grumpy little fluff, tilting her head and laughing a little bit. "Oh, the little thing," she said with a smile, turning to Ty and nodding thoughtfully. Fluffs were Meadowsweet's one weakness. There was nothing quite so darling, and maternal instincts ran strong in all females, even females of...less-than-stellar repute.
"You know, Pa Ty," she began slowly, considering her words to make sure she was saying what she meant, "if you've your claws full, I could certainly stay around and help a little bit. After all, it's probably best this one not be left alone in a strange place so soon after relocation." Fluffing her feathers, she leaned down and preened one of the tiny eartufts, crooning to Snowpeak happily.
"So if you wanted, I could quick pop off and catch a little something, unless you had any other ideas?"
She was an Artisan, certainly, and she was young, but Meadowsweet had been raised like all other young Sentinels. And Artisans did very little work outside the moult. It wasn't as if they shouldn't hunt. Only minders with fluffs and other such Sentinels needed food from the distribution platform. Meadowsweet, in short, knew how to hunt...and was perfectly willing to do it in exchange for another chance to stare at the little darling!
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Posted: Tue Jul 29, 2008 3:59 pm
Typhoon took a moment to weigh what could be considered weakness. If it was seen that he couldn't feed himself and his fledglings, perhaps he would be asked to step down from his Task as Minder. And Ty couldn't imagine a life without fledglings.
He decided he was just becoming a worrywart in his old age, and Meadowsweet was just being herself. Wanting to help out her old Minder.
"Thank you, dear. That would be very helpful. Dune can fend for himself, but I've been a bit busy here at the Enclave and haven't been able to snatch myself dinner for a while." Ty smiled. While she was gone he would be able to get the fledgling into his small hollow, which was the perfect size for a fledgling or fluff to stay safe in.
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Posted: Wed Sep 03, 2008 6:02 am
Meadowsweet waited patiently for her old Minder to decide exactly what he was doing, realizing that what she had offered might actually come as an insult to his pride. She didn't, however, think that the old fellow would react like that, and when he finally (if grudgingly) agreed, Meadowsweet smiled and spread her wings. "Thank you, Pa Ty. Something for you, and something for this little one, hopefully at the same time. I'll be back." And, dipping her head, she dropped gently from the branch and disappeared into the woods.
It was the better part of an hour before the young female came back, carrying a squirrel in her talons and what looked to be some sort of rodent (mouse, shrew perhaps) in her beak. She landed, rather more clumsily than before, and dropped the squirrel first, then the...it was probably a shrew.
"Sorry it took so long," she said breathlessly, when she finally had a beak to speak through again. "I'm not used to your territory, and the game is a bit...scarcer here." Truth be told, Meadowsweet had gotten distracted. But either her old Minder would remember that flighty aspect of her personality and overlook it, or he wouldn't notice. Hopefully.
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